Sustainability in all layers!

What makes a self-adhesive label material as sustainable as possible? How does it mostly conserve valuable resources? In response, HERMA presented a new labelstock at Labelexpo 2023. Its three main components – A PE film label material made of post-consumer recycled material, an adhesive without a carbon footprint and a new type of release liner – were selected and combined with the greatest possible sustainability in mind. “This new self-adhesive material shows what is already possible in practice today. It is neither a concept study nor a feasibility study, but a product that is now available, for example, for sustainable flagship projects with labels,” says Marcus Gablowski, Chief Sustainability Officer at HERMA.

HERMA rPE PCR white (grade 856) is used as the label material for the new self-adhesive material. Only post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic is used in the production of this white PE film. This is based, for example, on actual end-user waste, which has risen sharply in recent decades – without the addition of new granulate. The origin of the label material is visibly recognisable by means of the so-called specks. The new label stock is therefore ideal for very attractive labels that underline the recycled design and are preferably used on PE surfaces. “The use of a recycled plastic in a new product is another contribution that HERMA is making to support meaningful material cycles,” explains Gablowski. “The film material also shows how important it is to overcome the convenient throw-away mentality. Since we are only at the beginning of the circular economy as a society.”